Adventures in Bonding
by Kairi248
Summary: Percy Jackson made the gods swear on the river Styx that they would no longer ignore their children. How does a daughter of Apollo feel when her Olympian parent tries to keep this promise?
1. Chapter 1

**Okay so until I get more muse for my Thalia story (which I've already started to write) I decided to type out this story that I've played with in my head for close to a year now. Please be patient with me, because although I've toyed with different plots, outcomes, endings and what have you for this story, It's different when you're actually typing it out so my updating may be a little slow. Anyway, I hope you enjoy and it would really mean a lot to me if you would review ^_^**

**Disclaimer: I never have and more than likely never will own the world of Percy Jackson, nor Greek Mythology.**

She sat on her bed studying the seven year old picture. It was one of the things that she never knew exactly why she kept around. It just seemed to make her feel better. The picture was of her as a little girl, sitting on the lap of her mother, Angela. They looked so different at the time. Aria's mother's hair was red and her eyes green. Her skin was a bit pail too. Aria at the time had blond hair and blue eyes, accompanied with a slight tan. It wasn't fair. Aria had worked so hard to change herself, to be more like her mother, to pretend that her life was great, but every Summer she had to go back to the camp. She didn't want to be there. She didn't want to be held captive there, like an animal forced into individualized holding pens. Stereotyped. That's all Camp Half-Blood was, after all. A place for the gods to put all of their children to keep them out of their hair, and from drawing too much attention to their worlds. Aria remembered her first day at that camp. She was claimed after about a week and a half, and then simply pushed into the Apollo cabin. No visit from her "father", no explanation as to why he ruined her mother's life, nothing. She supposed she was lucky to be claimed at all, but that didn't make her feel any better. All of her half brothers and sisters all looked alike. They looked like her. That's why after that first Summer she'd changed.

The change had worked out pretty well. She dyed her hair to look like her mom's, and she started wearing green colored contacts. She stopped doing most of the things she loved, like singing, ballet, and anything else that seemed to be in character for a typical Apollo child. Aria hated it at first, but she got used to it once she realized the effect it had on her mother. It seemed to make her happier, though she would never admit it. Aria always thought it was because she always reminded her mom of Apollo. Once Aria changed, her mom seemed to not always feel depressed anymore. Angela never liked to talk about her relationship with Apollo. All Aria could piece together was that Apollo promised her the world, and said he would always be there for her. Then after he had his fun, he told Angela who he really was and left her humiliated, with a baby on the way. She never heard from him again. Aria and Angela shared the same hurt and anger towards him. They always had. It's what made them close.

Along with the change came another benefit of her change was when she went to Camp Half-Blood the next year. She couldn't be labeled "One of the Apollo kids" anymore. It wasn't that she hated her brothers or sisters or anything. No she liked them..Kayla, Will, Maria, Alex, Michael, and the rest of them. Who she really hated was their father. When she first went to that camp she never met him. Here she was, seventeen years old and she still hadn't met him. He obviously didn't care. Why would he? She was just another outcome of one of his many flings.

Aria placed the picture back into what she liked to call her "memory box" which contained all of her old ballet trophies, ribbons, her demo CD which she had recorded herself, her ballet flats, videos of her dancing, and pictures of her early childhood. After placing the box in the back of her closet she decided to go downstairs. Apollo didn't matter now. All that mattered was the fact that Summer was over and she was back home. She could focus on school and taking care of her mother. There was no doubt that she would need Aria's emotional support. She always did. Aria knew that her mother was unhappy with her life, and the most Aria could do was be there for her when she needed it most.

Aria's mother was sitting at the dining room table, cell phone in hand. She looked troubled.

"Mom, what's wrong?" Aria asked, sitting across from her.

"Honey, I just talked to my boss. They want me to go out of town for the week to take care of some things." She explained with an apologetic smile.

"But...but I've just got back! I've been gone the whole summer. I don't want either of us to leave again!"

"I know Ari, but it's only for a week."

"A week!"

"Aria, You can stay here and have a friend over or something. I'll have your aunt Charlotte stay with you even. Unless you'd rather go over there to stay with her?"

"No," she sighed. "I'll stay here." Aria didn't want to agree, but she knew that her mom needed this job. Things were tight, and Angela couldn't afford to turn down the boss' orders now.

"When do you have to leave?" She asked.

"First thing in the morning."

Two hours and 3 phone calls later, it was arranged that Aria was to stay at her house, and her aunt Charlotte would come over once or twice everyday to keep an eye on her. Aria wasn't the type of girl to get into trouble, so Charlotte wasn't necessary, but still. She took comfort in knowing that she wouldn't be alone the entire time. The next morning Aria had said goodbye to her mother, and Charlotte had stopped by with different pre-made meals, so that Aria wouldn't have to cook very much.

"Thanks for bringing this over Char, it really means a lot to me."

"Aw, it's no problem dear. I'm just sorry your mom had to leave...and you just got back too."

"Yeah, I know. But it's only a week. I'll be fine."

She kissed her aunt goodbye, she finally she was alone. She had nowhere to go, nothing to do. School didn't start until next week anyway, the house was mostly clean. She decided watch television in the living room. She sat down with her lab pup, Arty, curled up beside her, and together they watched re-runs of House.

Twelve thirty rolled around and the mail came.

"Well Arty, should I see if anything interesting has come today?"

Aria stood up and stretched before heading out the door. She got the mail and went through all of the letters.

"Hmph...Junk mail." she muttered to herself.

As she walked back into the house and shut the door behind her, she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye. Dismissing it as Arty, she made her way into the kitchen and put the mail on their small kitchen table. She walked back into the living room and there, wearing jeans, a polo shirt, jacket and Ray Bans, was a guy slightly older than her. About nineteen or twenty years old, and on her couch, with Arty curled up next to him. Aria froze, eyes wide, trying to think of where the nearest phone was to call 911. Where was her cell phone? Oh wait, he had it. Why did he have her cell phone? Who was he?All of these thoughts, along with panic were building up in her head. The man just sat there on the couch, fiddling with Aria's phone. He set her phone down, looked up at the still frozen Aria and smiled.

"Hey kiddo! So, how do you feel about family bonding?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow guys, chapter one had so many views in so few days, and my inbox was flooded with notices and alerts. That really means a lot to me!**

**OH! And in case you wanted a better idea of how to invision Aria, I've always pictured her as resembling Rachel Hurd-Wood. I know Rachel's a bit older, but still :D**

**PLEASE review ^_^**

**Disclaimer: So far I'm not Rick Riordan...When I turn into a middle aged wealthy man, THEN we'll talk.**

They just stood there (well, Aria was standing, Apollo was sitting) staring at each other. It was obvious that this guy wanted an answer to his question. It was also obvious that Aria wasn't going to give one. After what felt like an eternity, he stood up and removed his glasses, revealing his eyes. Her eyes. Well, her natural eyes anyway. He finally broke the silence.

"Well, you're really quite the chatterbox, aren't you?"

"I don't really understand...who are you?" Was the reply.

He raised an eyebrow. "What? You don't know? C'mon, you have to be a little smarter than that."

Aria knew who we was, but she didn't want to say it. "Why are you here?" she whispered.

"So you do know who I am after all?" He challenged.

Aria didn't respond. It appeared neither of them were going to get the answers they wanted.

"Well, we don't really seem to be getting anywhere, now do we?" He offered his hand to shake, grinning. "Apollo. Although I'm sure you already know that. God of music, poetry, other stuff of the sort. I drive the sun chariot, yada yada yada, I see all, know all. You know... the whole shebang. But enough about me."

Aria just stood there dumbstruck, and incredibly confused. Apollo seemed to give up on the whole handshake thing. He returned back to his place on the couch, and snuggled up to Arty. He motioned for Aria to come sit next to him, and she did, although she sat as far away from Apollo as she could.

"Cute dog. What's 'is name?"

"Um...aren't you supposed to know all, and stuff?" Apollo turned to look at her, making Aria rethink her reply.

"Uh..It's Arty...sir...?"

"That a statement or a question?" He returned his attention back to the dog. "Arty, huh? As in..." He pressed, and Aria knew what he was getting at.

"It's...short for Artemis. Fowl. Artemis Fowl. It's a character in a-"

"Artemis _Fowl_. Fairies or something like that, right?" She nodded. There was an awkward silence. Apollo picked Aria's cell phone back up off of the table, and continued to play with it. He must have been looking through her call history because he suddenly stiffened, raised an eyebrow and asked, eyes on the phone screen. "Aren't you a little...young to be talking to boys so much?" He tried to look stern but soon grinned and let out a chuckle. "Ha, sorry. I could never do the whole 'protective parent' thing. Had to try though." Aria just frowned. "Who's Will S. anyway?" The god questioned.

"Will Solace. You know, as in your _son_?"

Apollo just smiled and continued on with the phone.

"So, why are you here again?" Aria pressed.

The god put the phone down and sighed dramatically. He rolled his eyes once, before turning his focus on her. "Persistent, aren't you? Well, you see, after our little disagreement with the Titans last Summer, that-"

Aria frowned. "Little disagreement?"

"I said that, didn't I? Well anyway, that Jackson kid suggested we spent more time with our kids and all. Something about neglect, and needing to be more involved or something. I really wasn't paying too much attention. That's not important. Anyway, I'm startin' with you!" He beamed as if he'd just told Aria that she had won a million dollars or something. Again with the awkward silence. What was she to say? She didn't need Apollo around. She didn't want him around. She had gone seventeen years without any contact, and she wasn't going to start depending on him now. It made her angry that he thought so highly of himself. What was so great about him?

"Well thanks but I'll pass." She simply stated. "I know most of the other campers would be thrilled. Go try them."

He just stared at her, confused. "Why?"

"Because I'm not interested in spending any time with you, or getting to know you." She said firmly, standing up. Apollo honestly seemed puzzled.

Why wouldn't Aria want to be around him? Didn't all of the demigods dream about meeting their Olympian parent? Besides, he was Apollo. Apollo! Everyone liked him. He was awesome after all. But Aria wasn't impressed. As stupid and somewhat innocent as he may seem, he has ruined her mother's life. Angela had loved and trusted Apollo, and he had thrown her away. He didn't care about anyone but himself. Aria would never see past that. She promised herself she wouldn't.

"You'll change your mind." He decided with a grin.

Aria was startled. Had he been reading her mind or something? "What?"

He just rolled his eyes again. "You'll want to spend time with me soon enough." He beamed. "So, what do you wanna do? Movie? Dinner?" His eyes strayed to the Xbox next to the television. "...Or, if you don't feel like going out we could play Rock Band!"

Aria didn't get it. Couldn't this guy take a hint? She didn't want him around. Why wasn't he leaving? She had sat on the floor watching him play Rock Band for an hour now. An hour. An entire hour of her non-immortal life, which she would never get back. Wasted, gone. Apollo had been trying to get her to join in but she just glared at him every time he tried. When he learned that offering wasn't producing satisfying results, he started whining. Aria was really annoyed at this point. He was nothing like she imagined. She pictured a Greek god like what they taught in school. Serious, calm and above everyone else. Instead, what she got was an immature nineteen year old looking immortal, who obviously thought way highly of himself, and complained every time he made a mistake in Rockband, that the remote was broken and it just wasn't his fault. She had to remind herself that it could be worse. It could be worse, right? When will he go away?

"So how long are you planning on visiting, exactly?"

He paused the game and seemed to be thinking about it. "Hmm, maybe a week."

He decided before resuming his game. Aria internally groaned. A week? Seven days? This was obviously going to be an incredibly long week.

"Hungry?" The god asked his daughter once he tired of the Xbox.

"Listen, I don't think you're understanding me. You don't have to stay here. Really. I'm fine without your 'family bonding' sessions. I'm sure you have...much more important things to do." Aria stated.

Apollo pretended to think about it. "You don't like me much, do you?"

Gee, what gave it away? Aria bit her tongue to keep from screaming. Here was this immature guy, who walks into her house, says he's her father, and goes on like it's nothing!

"That's okay Aria, I could use a challenge." Apollo grinned. Right now, Aria wanted to snap his neck. "C'mon, go get changed into something nice."

"Huh?"

Apollo sighed, as if she were a hopeless case. "We're going out to_ dinner_." He explained.

"No, that's okay we don't have to-"

"No, no. That's an order." He announced. "And hurry up, I'm hungry!" Again, Aria thought as she was marching upstairs to her room, It's going to be a very long week. "And make sure it's dressy!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, If I slip into first person I'm so sorry. I 've been writing my Thalia story, which is first person so I keep getting mixed up!**

**Thanks so much to the wonderful people who gave me advice for my writing. I know I'm not exactly the best, so every bit of advice helps greatly!**

**Enjoy and please remember to leave a comment! The comments and reviews are what fuel me to actually write this thing XD  
><strong>

**Disclaimer: I'm not Rick Riordan, therefor I don't own Percy Jackson.**

Aria stood in her room, examining herself in her large mirror. She was wearing a simple white knee-length sundress, with dark green flowers embroidered along the bottom of it. The dress alone was plain, but accompanied with a green shrug, matching chandelier earrings, and her fiery red hair let down, it looked dressy. When it came to weather, this was her favorite part of the year. Even though school would be starting up very soon and it would be cold, she had little more than another week and a half of warm weather, so she might as well make the most of it. Plus, it wasn't like she could wear what she wanted at camp.

The girl walked over to her bed to sit down. How could she get out of this? She didn't want to go. She wanted to be alone, and she wanted Apollo to go away. But she couldn't refuse him...he was Apollo. Immature as he may seem, she hadn't forgotten the history they taught at Camp Half-Blood. You didn't cross the gods. If you did, there would be consequences. It just didn't make any sense. Why did Apollo suddenly show up and throw himself into her life as if it were no big deal?

They sat in his red sports car together. She had guessed by now that the car was actually the sun chariot in one of it's many forms. "Yeah, it can drive as well as fly. Cool, huh?" Apollo smirked. But Aria remained silent. He still hadn't told her exactly where they were going, and Aria was the sort of girl who liked to know what was going on.

They hadn't been driving long when the pulled up into the lot of some fancy restaurant. It appeared to be one of those high end places with the names that nobody could pronounce anyway. Aria attempted to decode the large sign, but soon gave up. Dyslexia made everything so complicated. When they got out of the car, Aria was able to get a good look at what Apollo was wearing. He had somehow changed into a suit and tie and while what he was wearing was simple, the god still managed to look as if he were highly important. He linked arms with his daughter, and together they walked inside. The second Aria was through the door, she felt as if she stuck out like a sore thumb. She didn't like it when people looked at her. She was never much of a people person, and yet here were people staring.

They were quickly seated and their waitress came to order their drinks. She was young, not much older than Aria herself. And of course, she had her full attention of Apollo. She gave him a flirty look, before turning to Aria and eying her distastefully. Aria mentally cringed at the realization that people wouldn't exactly see a pair of teenage kids and think of them as father-daughter. They each ordered a water, and the waitress left.

"You still haven't told me why exactly you're here." Aria prodded.

Apollo just blinked. "Yes I have."

"No, you said that Percy told the gods to spend more time with your kids. I knew that part, but why are you _here_? I was at camp for a while you know. You could have just stopped by."

That earned Aria a frown. "I was busy." Apollo muttered. "But what's important now is that I'm here, and we can talk."

"About?"

Just then, the waitress came back with their drinks.

"Thanks darlin'." He said to her with a wink. Aria was getting mad. He acted as if he were Edward freaking Cullen, or something. She mentally shuddered.

Aria waited for the other girl to leave. "Okay, is that really necessary?" She hissed.

Apollo looked confused. "What?"

"You were flirting." She accused.

"I was being nice." He insisted. "You're just paranoid." They stared at each other for a moment.

"Flirting." Aria mumbled.

"Being nice." Apollo pushed.

They sat there, in silence for a while. There were so many things Aria wanted to ask...Things that her mother wouldn't tell her...but she knew she would never be able to get a single decent answer.

"I hate you're phone." Came the random statement.

"Huh?" Aria was beyond confused.

"What you need is a smart-phone! The one you have now has no interesting features what so ever." Apollo complained.

Why the heck was he complaining about Aria's phone?Maybe he was that desperate to start a conversation...Maybe if Aria just tried to carry a lively conversation...

"So...um, hows...hows Olympus?" Really? Is that _all_ Aria could think up? What kind of stupid question was that?

Stupid as it was, Apollo seemed glad that she was talking to him. "It's awesome, actually! That girl...what was her name? Annie? Anna? Annabell? Ann...Anne? An-"

"Annabeth?" Aria supplied.

Apollo snapped his fingers. "Yeah, yeah, her. She's doing a pretty good job with the rebuilding and all."

"That's...great."

"Yeah."

So much for a lively conversation. Aria desperately wanted to ask about her mother, but she just couldn't make herself do it. She didn't really want to bring up her mother now. It just didn't seem right.

The pair ordered their food and spent a good deal of time sitting silently.

It wasn't until after they ate, left the restaurant, and were in the car on their way back to Aria's house, that Aria decided to pry.

"Do you mind if I ask you a question?"

Apollo seemed thrilled. He went into bragging phase. "Sure! What do you want to know about? I could tell you about the battles I've fought, the enemies I've crushed, the poems and songs I've written, the-"

"Why did you leave mom?" Aria blurted. Oh no. She hadn't meant to just throw it out there...

Apollo tensed. His face grew serious and he fixed a glare on the road. "It's complicated. Too complicated to explain." He dismissed it.

"Try." She pushed.

"No."

"_Yes_."

Although she couldn't see it, Aria knew she had crossed some sort of line. She spared a glance at Apollo and sure enough, he looked angry.

Had she really just tried to tell him what to do? "Excuse me," He demanded. "Have you forgotten who you're talking to?"

Aria just sat silently staring at her lap, thinking of all the smart things she could say. Everyone always told her she was stubborn...and she didn't exactly get that trait from her mother. Normally she wouldn't be afraid to speak her mind, but Apollo was still a god. She had to remember that.

His expression softened and he let out a dramatic sigh. "I thought it was obvious. An immortal can't stay with one mortal for too long. The time comes to move on. Whether we like it or not."

"I'm not stupid. I know that's not true." A god could stay wherever he liked as long as he liked, and Aria knew it. Apollo was just trying to keep himself from looking bad. That made Aria mad. When Aria was mad, she tended to cry. That made her even madder.

They arrived at the house at that moment, and Aria got out of the car and stormed inside, before Apollo could say anything. Apollo by the way, was now fuming. He followed her inside the house, and stood by the front door, watching as raced up the steps. "_Yes it is_!" He yelled after her. Aria flinched, and stopped half way up the steps. She didn't turn around to face him, because she didn't want him to see her crying. She didn't like being yelled at, and she didn't like crying. She hated feeling weak.

"Then if it is, why continue to make promises you know you can't keep?" Aria whispered before continuing up the steps and running to her room, making sure to slam and lock her door. Just to make a point.

She cried a lot that night, as she lay in bed. She cried for her heartbroken mother, she cried for the father-daughter relationship she would never have, and she cried at the realization that she now had an angry, all powerful god downstairs, who was sure to be there in the morning.


	4. Chapter 4

**And here we have the next installment!**

**I wanted to say thanks to all the people who have been reading my story. It really means a lot to me, because (and I don't know why) but I'm really, really, really self conscious when it's comes to my writing. I literally get so nervous when I post a chapter or story up, so it means a lot to me when my inbox is flooded with positive messages and alerts. I'm such a loser XD**

**I really want a bad haiku for Apollo to use, but I really just can't think of any :( Help?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJ&O.**

* * *

><p>Aria slowly opened her eyes. The room was bright, telling her that it was morning already. She looked at the clock to verify. Yup. It was 9:00 a.m. She was still so glad to have her room back. The beds at camp Half-Blood weren't exactly...top notch. But whatever. She made-do. She had to remind herself that being in her cabin was much better than being in the Hermes' cabin.<p>

It wasn't until after she got dressed and was about to leave her room to go downstairs, that Aria remembered who may be waiting for her. She suddenly felt kind of sick, and wanted to go back to her warm bed. After a moment of agonizing over what she should do, she slowly made her way downstairs, hoping that for some reason he had left.

And of course, the Fates were as cruel as always. Apollo was sitting on the couch, snuggled next to Arty, playing the Play Station 2.

He didn't look at her, as he was all too busy with what he way doing. Aria continued to walk closer and say what he was playing.

"Kingdom Hearts?" Aria was puzzled- again.

Apollo seemed to be frustrated and paused the game.

"Kingdom Hearts _Chain of Memories_. You're telling me you've never played this?"

"Um...well I played the first one and the second one. But wait, where did you get this one?"

"I have my ways. Now are you gonna let me play or what? I don't like this '_Olympus Coliseum_' world. Hades shouldn't be this hard to beat! It's _Hades_ for Zeus' sake! Oh, and your breakfast is on the counter, next to the microwave."

He resumed his game and Aria found herself speechless. But rather than try to make sense of the god's video game addiction, she headed for the kitchen. Sure enough, on the counter next to the microwave, was a Dunkin' Donuts bag, next to a cup of coffee. Huh, two chocolate cake donuts, a bagel with cream cheese, and a cup of black coffee. How did he know?

She put them on a plate, made her way back to the living room and sat down next to Apollo and Arty. Suddenly she remembered that Arty was probably hungry too. She started to get up.

"Already fed the dog. And let him out."

"Oh..."

She sat back down and ate in silence for a while. Aria watched Apollo and by the time he finally beat the level after cursing the PS2 a few times, she was done eating.

"So," The god spoke up. "Why don't we spend the day at the mall?"

The idea of leaving the house again with Apollo made her mentally cringe.

"Actually, I would rather just stay here for the day...If that's okay?"

Apollo seemed to pout a little bit, bit besides that he seemed fine.

"Aw, okay. Well what do you want to do then?"

Aria still didn't understand why Apollo didn't seem upset about the previous night.

"Well if you're going to be here for a week, why don't we get to know each other? I've kind of never met you before yesterday."

The god reluctantly agreed, and he turned to face her.

"Favorite color?"

"Well...It's green-"

"Favorite animal?"

"Wolves, but-"

"Phobia?"

"Apollo, don't mean twenty questions. I mean like actually trying to get to know each other."

Apollo frowned. "What do you mean? I _am_ trying!"

"No, I mean.." She sighed. She wasn't sure how to say to him what she wanted to. Here was Apollo, her _dad_. She'd never met him before, and here he was trying to be 'Dad of the Year' or something. But...it was like he really didn't know how to even talk to her. Maybe that's why he took the appearance of such a young age. He didn't know _how_ to act like a father.

She must have been thinking for too long because Apollo was waiting for her to continue.

"What do you mean?" He prodded.

It was time obviously to give up. "Oh, Uh...you know what? Why don't we go ahead and go to the mall?"

Apollo seemed relieved. "Great! Let's go." he jumped up and headed for the door. Not one to waste time.

They spent hours at the mall. The pair seemed to be large in contrast. Aria wanted to go to the little local mall, but Apollo insisted on driving an hour to the large super mall. Aria was content to just browse her favorite stores where as Apollo felt the need to visit every single store, buy at least three things, and "dazzle" the store clerk until they allowed him to pay with drachma. And yes, "dazzle" was the word that Apollo used, himself.

13 stores, 5 large shopping bags, and 8 nasty looks directed at Aria from jealous teenage girls later, Aria was ready to go home. They were sitting on a bench outside of the book store, when a group of three girls walked by. If Aria had to guess, she would have said that they were about her age. They were blushing, giggling, and trying to get Apollo's attention.

"Hey." He winked at them, which just encouraged them.

When they were gone, Aria felt sick. It was just _wrong_. How old was Apollo, really? Two, three thousand years old? And now he was flirting with every girl under the age of thirty. It was creepy.

"Alright, are you ready to go?"

"What? We haven't even covered half of the mall yet!"

"Yeah, but I'm tired and-"

"You haven't even bought anything yet." He whined.

"Look, Apollo I just really want to-"

"Oh! I know, lets go look for a new phone for you!"

"No! Seriously, take me home."

Apollo suddenly picked up on Aria's bad mood, and turned serious.

"Okay, let's go."

When they got home, Apollo too seemed to be in a bad mood. To him, Aria was boring, and had no interest in getting to know him what-so-ever. He took his usual place on the couch, folded him arms, and glared at Aria.

"So, what now? You going to go to your room angry again, for the entire night?"

"Maybe I will." Aria snapped.

"Fine. Not like I care."

"Good thing." She made her way into the kitchen, heated up some left over macaroni and garlic bread, and took it upstairs to her room.

She was sick of Apollo and she wanted to hear her mom's voice again. She found her cell, and dialed the number. She talked to her mom for about an hour, being careful not to mention Apollo.

When she was done, she put her earphones in and blasted some of her favorite songs, and again, she cried herself to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**So guess what happened? I wrote most of a chapter, and it somehow got deleted O.o**

**I have NO idea how that happened...So yeah, sorry for the delay, but here is it :D**

**So sorry for the Greek rather than ancient Greek in this chapter... Just pretend it's ancient xD**

**Thanks so much to everyone for your reviews and favorites. And a very special thanks to...**

**LovelyWickedDiscet- for the poem! It's the perfect one for Apollo too xD Aria won't like it too much,**

**considering Apollo's supposed to be terrible at haiku's and poems :P**

**Ncalkins- for the idea of making a chapter focusing more on Apollo's point of view ;D**

**Oh, and If anybody has any ideas for a terrible haiku about the counsel of the gods, lemme know!**

**I hope everyone enjoys!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJ&O**

**Day Three~**

* * *

><p>"Do you sing?"<p>

"Used to."

"Play any instruments?"

"Used to."

"What did you play?"

"Guitar, piano and violin."

"Why'd you stop?"

"Personal reasons."

"That's descriptive."

"You bet."

Apollo was getting frustrated. Here he was, _trying_ to get to know this kid, and she didn't even care. It was very rude. He'd even prepared a picnic for the two of them, before Aria woke up. He was all proud of himself, until Aria found out. He had to drag her out of the house and to the park, with her complaining the whole way. She wanted to bond, but she didn't want to bond out in public? That made no sense! Some people were just too hard to please...

So here they were, sitting at the park. Apollo asking the questions, and Aria giving minimal answers.

"Any aren't you answering my questions?" The god pouted.

"I _am_," His daughter said stubbornly. "I'm giving just as much detail to your questions as you give to mine, _Apollo._"

Jeez. She was moody if you woke her up in the morning.

"You're mean."

"You're annoying."

"You're rude."

"You're unfair."

"How am I unfair?"

"Well, for starters, you're asking me all these questions, but I'm not allowed to know anything about you. That's unfair. We're supposed to be getting to know each other."

Apollo let that sink in for a moment.

"You still don't like me." He guessed.

Apollo hadn't met a child of his that hadn't adored and idolized him. It was weird with Aria. She almost acted as if she didn't want him around...

"Look, it's not that I hate you or anything. It's just that..."

"Just that..." Apollo pushed.

"It's just a little weird, you know? I've gone my entire life without you, and now you just show up and expect me to worship the ground you walk on."

Apollo thought for a moment. "Well I _am_ a god." He explained as if it were obvious.

That must have been the wrong answer because Aria just scowled at him.

"It was a figure of speech! You know what I mean. You just- Ugh. You know what? Forget it. Can we go home now?"

This was proving to be a tougher challenge than Apollo thought...

"Με ενοχλείτε..."

"Me? Seriously? Huh. Isn't that something."

Apollo narrowed his eyes. Aria was so much like her mother sometimes. She was so moody today...Then he though of something to lighten her mood a bit.

"I made a poem!" Apollo announced proudly.

"Seriously?"

The god ignored her and cleared his throat.

"_Aria is being a brat,_

_So she is making me rather mad,_

_What am I to do_?"

Aria just sat there, watching him.

"Cool, huh? Was that not genius?"

Apollo was pretty proud of that one, but Aria just looked at him.

"That's it. I'm going home." She sighed.

The god then began to pout. He gave her a puppy dog look. "Fine...I'll take you home if that's what you

want.."

Aria stood up and wiped the pieces of grass off of her.

"You know what?"

"Yes?" Apollo seemed hopeful.

"You're incredibly immature."

"Ouch."

"I'm serious, take me home."

"Okay so it turns out that I have to go to Olympus for a little while today."

The pair were sitting in Aria's living room, on the couch. Arty was in between them, with his head on Apollo. That seemed to bother Aria. Apollo guessed it was because Arty seemed to like him better than he liked Aria.

"When?"

Apollo glanced at the clock.

"Now, pretty much. Don't worry though, I'll be back by tonight."

And with that he was gone, and Aria seemed relieved.

"Apollo, you're late _again_." Zeus boomed.

All eleven of the other gods and goddesses in counsel sat upon their respective thrones as Apollo arrived to Mount Olympus.

"Relax father, I just had some business to take care of." He grinned.

Zeus raised an eyebrow. "Another woman?" He accused.

That made Artemis glare at her brother, as she didn't approve of his affairs with mortal woman.

"_Actually_, I was spending time with one of my daughters. That reminds me, how is _Thalia_ doing?"

Zeus seemed frustrated that he couldn't answer that question. In fact, it was Artemis who stepped in.

"My lieutenant is just fine, thank you. May we _resume_ with the reason we're all here?"

Athena spoke up. "Yes, I'm rather interested in the progress that Apollo has made."

Hermes, Aphrodite, Ares and Hephaestus agreed.

Zeus again spoke. "And what have you accomplished in the past few days?"

"I'm trying, okay?"

"Try harder!"

Apollo just scowled.

"Don't worry about it. I've accepted my job, and I've been working on it. Why do you think I've been spending so much time in the mortal world, anyway?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Alrighty, so I know it's been a while, but I have excuses.**

**1. I was out of town taking care of my grandma for a few weeks.**

**2. After that, I was in ANOTHER state helping my friend's family move.**

**3. I was suuuper busy re-adjusting to being home again.**

**But now that I'm back, I'm working on other stories as well.**

**Currently I'm having a bit of trouble because FF says that I've uploaded 15/15 stories/chapters o.O Huh? There's a limit? Is there a way around it without deleting previous chapter and stories? LET ME KNOW PLEASE. If you don't I can't upload for a really long time until I figure it out =/**

**Also, the previous chapter may have been a _little_ misleading. It's not so much how special Aria is, but it has more to do with Apollo.**

**So I'll stop babbling now, but please leave a review. I woke up this morning to find my guinea pig dead, and I've been a wreck all day. A few reviews would really cheer me up =/**

**Enjoy this chappie.**

* * *

><p><strong>Disclaimer: I own nothing.<br>**

**Day three, part two!**

* * *

><p>Aria sat at the dining room table talking to her mom on the phone for hours. She, again, was careful not to mention Apollo's nearly constant presence at all. They mostly talked about Angela's meetings and assignments. They talked about how much they missed each other, and Angela planned things for them to do once she returned. Aria gave her mother a basic summery of her Summer at Camp Half-Blood, since they never got had a chance to really catch up. Aria tried to keep the conversation on Angela, because she really didn't want to lie when her mom asked what she had been doing since her departure.<p>

It was around five when Aria finally got off of the phone. It was oddly quiet. She guessed that she had kind of gotten used to Apollo's loud, obnoxious ways. Not in an I-miss-Apollo way, just a I-don't-remember-it-being-this-quiet kind of way. Even Arty seemed lonelier without the sun god around. He just moped around the house, as if waiting for his immortal friend's return. Aria scooped up the puppy, and set him on the couch next to her. She turned on the television, and after a good twenty minutes, she decided that nothing was on. Finally, she laid down next to Arty, thinking.

This wasn't exactly how Aria had imagined her home coming. She wanted it to be like it always was, but here she was...her mother away, sitting in the empty house, with the annoyance of Apollo when he was around. Aria looked at the clock. 5:30 p.m. Was Apollo not coming back? Was he lying about the meeting on Olympus just to get away from her? Or maybe-

"Stop it!" She whispered to herself. She was being paranoid. As if she even had reason to be paranoid. It wasn't like she wanted that stupid god around anyway...right? Sure, he was her biological father, but he'd never had anything to do with her until 3 days ago. She knew nothing of him, besides what Chiron and her 6th grade teacher had to say. And even then, it wasn't like she'd heard those things from Apollo himself. It was different if you heard about someone from other people. Aria laughed at the idea of how many children only knew what they knew about their parents by books or teachers. What she would give to have a normal human being for a dad...

"Aria, wake up."

Aria quickly shot up. She tried to gather her thoughts. She couldn't remember very much, and she was groggy. She looked at the clock on the wall. 6:45 p.m. She had fallen asleep. Apollo was calmly standing in front of her, waiting for her to move and get up.

"Uh, how was the meeting?"

"Could have been better." Apollo muttered. He pointed to a large white bag on top of the coffee table. "Chinese."He said with a scowl before sitting next to her and turning on the PlayStation 2.

Why was Apollo in such a bad mood? It didn't make sense...whatever happened at Olympus must have been bad.

Aria sat in silence, watching Apollo for what felt like forever. Whatever was on the god's mind must have pushed him to his limits, because suddenly he slammed down the remote and turned to Aria.

"You got me in trouble." He accused.

"Trouble?" Aria was confused.

"Yes. Trouble."

"How so?"

Apollo let out a long dramatic sigh, but refused to answer her question.

"How so?" She repeated.

"Why does that matter?"

"It just does."

"No, it doesn't."

"Tell me."

"No."

"Tell me!"

"No!"

"Please?"

"Still no."

"Why won't you tell me?"

"I shouldn't have to."

"What does that even mean?"

"It's embarrassing."

Aria rolled her eyes. "Will you just tell me, already?"

"I'm _grounded_." He whined.

Aria couldn't help herself, she started to giggle. "You're..._what_?"

"Grounded...literally." Apollo sulked. "I have to stay in the mortal world where I can be closely watched."

By this point, Aria was full out laughing uncontrollably.

"Wait...so you mean to tell me that Zeus _grounded_ you because of something I said or did?"

"Ugh, it's not funny, okay? See, I've been spending all of this time down here, and the other gods in counsel think that I'm hiding out down here to get out of some responsibilities. They don't believe that I'm actually spending time with you. Therefor, I'm not allowed to go to Olympus unless summoned, until further notice, and I'm going to be closely monitored for a while, in order to make sure that I'm doing what I should be."

"In other words...Zeus thinks that you're running around with a thousand girlfriends about now?"

"Pretty much."

Aria suddenly kind of felt bad. Here he was, trying to be...a parent-like figure. All Aria was doing was making things harder on him. Aria was too busy thinking to notice Apollo at first. After a few moments, she realized that he had somehow gone from grumpy Apollo to innocent, big eyed, puppy-dog-face Apollo.

"Aria..."

She internally groaned. She knew what was coming.

"Can you _please_ make this easier on me? Can we try actually bonding? No holding back information?"

Aria just scowled. Sure. _She_ had been the one withholding personal info. But here was a chance to actually talk with Apollo. Not just silly twenty questions. A chance to actually bond.

"Fine." Aria agreed.

And so it began. The pair sat in the living room with their Chinese food, going through each of their pasts. Aria told Apollo about all of her favorite memories, her likes, dislikes, her fears, her dreams, her friends, her enemies, and so on. Apollo in turn told her of his many adventures, battles, worries, likes and dislikes, achievements, and theories. This was the most open they had been with each other. Yet, it still bothered her. The one thing that she wished to know most. Why had he left her mother? Did he still have feelings for Angela? Did he ever? It stung to think about how he just up and left her mother. It was just a matter of time before Apollo went off and Aria would never seem him again...

She had to stop scaring herself!

"Were you telling the truth?"

Apollo frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You said that you came here to bond with me because you wanted to...Or at least, I was your first choice. Is that the truth?"

Apollo smiled slightly. "Of course it is. In fact, that Jackson kid told us that we needed to spend time with our children and all...and I'm the only one that's doing it. I guess I don't have to be here...but I want to. You're kind of my favorite." He beamed. "Just... don't repeat that, okay?"

Aria thought about that. Did Apollo really want to be here? Was she really his favorite? Did he mean it?

"But I thought that Zeus was worried you weren't doing what they had to do as well?"

"In case you haven't noticed, He- Actually, I guess you've never met him have you?"

Aria shook her head.

"Okay, well how well do you know Thalia?"

"A bit."

"Enough to know that she can have a flare for drama, and doesn't like to look bad or be viewed as inferior to anyone? Kind of a control freak?"

"Yeah..." Aria fought laughter.

"Well imagine that, only 3,000 times worse. That's dad, for ya."

Aria had never heard Apollo refer to the Lord of the Skies as "dad" before. It sounded a little weird.

"That bad?"

"Defiantly. So I know for a fact that he hasn't visited Thalia at all. I know this because she's been with Arty 24/7."

The pup raised his head to look at Apollo.

"Not _ you _Arty. My sister. Her name's Artemis but I call her Arty sometimes. It's a habit of mine that she doesn't like much."

"Um... he's..just a dog. I'm pretty sure that he doesn't understand you."

Apollo just grinned. "Oh, you'd be surprised. What were we talking about? Oh! Yeah, Thalia. Well anyway, Zeus must be embarrassed that he's not doing what he knows he should be, whereas I am."

Aria nodded. She guessed it made a little bit of sense.

After hours and hours of catching up, Aria looked at the clock only to see that it was passed midnight. Apollo seemed to realize the hour as well.

"I guess you had better head to bed for the night, right?"

"I probably should." Aria stood up and stretched.

"Well, have a good night." The god smiled.

"You too."

Aria started up the steps and then stopped half way.

"Apollo?"

The god, still sitting on the couch looked up. "Yeah?"

"...Thanks. For trying and all."

Apollo just grinned.

As Aria laid in bed, she realized that this was the first night since Apollo's arrival that she didn't cry, not even a tear. Maybe Apollo wasn't so bad after all. And for the first time, Aria looked forward to their time together tomorrow.

After Aria went to bed, Apollo remained on the couch, deep in thought. Maybe he had turned Aria around. Maybe she would learn to like him. Maybe they could actually have a good relationship. The god smiled to himself as he wondered what it would be like, having a daughter who didn't hate, resent, or fear you. He had to quickly remind himself that soon he had to move on. Day for was pretty much here, and after three more days...

Apollo glanced up at the window just in time to see glimpse of a large white _thing_.

_Oh no_.

The sun god stood up and walked towards the closer window. The white thing had veered to the left and was now out of Apollo's sight. He stiffened and internally groaned as he noticed that the feeling of the room had suddenly shifted. It was uncomfortable. He knew that he wasn't alone anymore.

He didn't want to hurt around...

He didn't want to turn around...

He didn't want to turn around...

He turned around.

Sure enough, she was there. It was odd seeing her in jeans and a plain white top, yet she still looked as deadly as ever. Not that he could die, but it still freaked him out sometimes. Her cold gray eyes were analyzing every move that he made.

"Hello Apollo."

"What do you want?"

"Have you told her?"

"No!" He snapped.

"Shall I?"

"She doesn't need to know."

"Doesn't she? You're making her feel as if you actually care."

"Maybe I do care..."

"I think your daughter deserves to know that you aren't here because you 'want to be.' Is she even really 'kind of your favorite'"?

That made Apollo scowl. "Why were you spying?"

"I wasn't spying." She snapped.

"Oh really?"

"I was only ensuring that your honesty is real. It's my duty. My _assigned_ job. You know how that goes, don't you? After all, you are here with Aria..."

"Just...just shut up and go away, alright?"

"Do you ever plan to tell her?"

"Not a chance!"

"Then I guess I have no choice but to tell her myself."


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay so not only has it taken me ages to update this, but this chapter is super duper short T-T The reason for this though, is that I wrote the next chapter and realized that I kinda needed a filler chapter...this is it. Don't hate me!**

**As always, reviews, comments and constructive criticism and GREATLY appreciated.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJ&O.**

**((Day four))**

* * *

><p>The next morning Apollo seemed to be troubled. Aria had woken up and Apollo was sitting right where she had left him the night before. He had a vacant look in his eye but when asked, he insisted he was fine.<p>

"How'd you sleep?"

"Good I guess. I'm fine...but what about you? You don't seem right."

The god paused for a moment.

"Don't seem right..." He muttered to himself before snapping out of it. He turned and grinned at his daughter. "No, no. I'm fine. Perfect, actually!"

"You...are?"

The god nodded. "Just thinking."

Aria had to bite back a smart remark at that one. "Uh..okay. If...you say so."

"I do."

Aria just rolled her eyes and decided to drop it. "Whats the plan for today?"

Apollo seemed to perk up slightly. "I thought we could go to the beach!"

Aria blinked.

After a moment, the sun god cleared his throat before repeating himself. "...I thought we could go to the beach!"

Again, Aria said nothing.

"Ahem. I though we could go-"

"I heard you the first time!"

"Well...you didn't say anything so I wasn't sure. So what do you think?"

"Uh...I _think_- No in fact I'm pretty certain that the nearest beach is 6 hours away."

"Negative Nelly." Apollo mumbled. "Alright then, what ideas do you have?"

"Um...well..."

Apollo's hand shot up. "Oh! Oh! Oh!"

Aria just frowned. "Yes...Apollo?"

"We could go to a concert!"

Aria thought about that for a moment. "Nah, too last minute."

"Ugh, you're no fun. You know that? You have to be one of the absolute most boring people I know. Nearly as bad a Zeus. And trust me, that's an insult."

Suddenly, there was a loud rumbling outside and it started to cloud over very quickly.

The god sighed dramatically. "Okay, okay. Sorry. I said I'm sorry!" He called out.

Almost instantly it cleared up outside.

"Touchy...Well anyway, if you don't have any ideas we might as well just hang out here."

Aria couldn't help but feel relieved at that idea. 

That day turned out to be the best that she'd had with Apollo. They ordered pizza, rented movies, played Rock Band, and talked the entire time. Apollo seemed cheerful and he seemed to honestly be enjoying himself too. Even Arty followed them around, his tail wagging. It was the first time that Aria felt relaxed and content. She didn't once think about her mother, or the fact that Apollo was immortal. It was almost exactly what she imagined hanging out with a normal dad to be like. And she loved it. 

Three movies, two pizzas, and an infinite amount of Rock Band battles later, Aria was tired.

"They're really missing out."

"What do you mean?" Aria asked.

Apollo smiled slightly. "The other gods. They're really missing out...this is fun, ya know...bonding."

Aria grinned. "Yeah, it is."

"I meant what I said, by the way. About everything. You being my favorite, and all. You're a good kid."

"How can you be sure if you've never spent time with all of the others?"

"Well just because I may not spend a lot of time with them, doesn't mean I don't _watch._"

Aria thought about this.

"And thanks, for giving me a chance. It really means a lot to me, Aria."

"You meant what you said about wanting to be here too, right?"

"I said I did, and I meant it."

Aria just smiled at him, not saying anything.

She never thought she would hear Apollo say those words. Ever. To hear him say that made her incredibly happy.

Maybe they could be close after all.


	8. Chapter 8

**Woo! Another chapter XD Not too much to say here, except a huge thank you to..**

**JAG3600 for one of the haikus that you made up a while ago when I posted chapter..5, was it? Anyway, I tweaked it a bit and used it for Apollo in this chappie ;D**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy and it would REALLY mean a lot to me if you could take ten seconds to leave a review? Pretty please?**

**((Day 5))**

* * *

><p>Aria woke up to complete silence. Arty wasn't scratching at her door demanding to be let in, which meant that it must have been super early. She looked at the clock.<p>

_10:12._

10:12? Arty had let her sleep in this late? That was odd.

Aria quickly got up and put on sweat pants and a t-shirt. She pressed her ear to the door and listened. Nothing. No Arty, no TV, nothing. Aria quietly opened the door and made her way down the steps. As she neared the bottom, she started to get worried. Arty was always there to greet her. It was quiet. Too quiet.

_You're being paranoid_. She thought to herself. Of course. Apollo must have let the dog out or something.

But as she turned the corner to go into the living room, she saw that the dog was not outside. He was sitting on the floor, watching what was in front of him. Apollo and...some woman seemed to be having some sort of stare-down. The woman was calmly watching Apollo, while he was scowling at her. Both were statue still. So still, Aria had a hard time telling if they were breathing or not.

"Morning."

It ended up sounding much more like a question than a greeting. Both of the figures quickly snapped their heads to look at Aria. The looks on their faces made her regret speaking at all.

"Uh, am I interrupting something? I...I can go..." Aria suggested.

The woman raised an eyebrow. "You sure take your time getting up, don't you girl?"

Aria didn't like the way she had said "girl". She said it as if she held some kind of authority. As if she were...

_Oh no. Not another one._

The last thing Aria needed was a goddess in the house.

"She can sleep in as long as she wants! You don't have to be so bossy." Apollo said through gritted teeth.

The supposed goddess just ignored him, her full attention on Aria. Aria didn't really know what to say.

"I'm...sorry?" She offered.

The woman just shrugged. "No matter. You're awake now. Would I be correct to assume that you know who I am?"

"Uh...um...well..."

Honestly she had no idea. Something in the back of her mind was shouting the answer...  
>Aria studied her for a moment. She had long hair, formed in perfect curls. She had a very familiar determined expression and aura about her. And this woman also had dark gray eyes. Almost exactly like-<p>

_Oh crap._

"Hm. It appears you do not know. Would you like a hint?"

Aria could tell that she had offended the goddess a little bit by her lack of knowledge, but she was too stunned to speak.

"Very well, then. Let me help you remember."

She stood up straighter than she already was, if that was even possible. It made Aria uneasy how high she held her head.

"I have led and won many battles. I have an entire city dedicated to my namesake. I am the patron of various crafts, including weaving and metalwork. I know quite a bit about both architecture and war. I've aided many heroes in their quests. I have a particular dislike for salt water, and I'm known for being rather strategic."  
>The goddess smirked. "Need I go on, or have you got it now?"<p>

"Show off." Apollo mumbled.

Aria's mouth was dry. "You're...Athena."

"Of course. I'd deeply honored that you even bothered to remember my name,_ Arianna Delphina Bow_. "

The girl's eyed widened. "I...I'm sorry, my lady."

"As you should be." Athena looked at the girl with a look that screamed disapproval.

Apollo cut it. "You don't have to be so uptight!"

That made the two immortals resume their stare down.

"Uh...if you don't mind my asking, why are you here lady Athena?" Aria questioned.

Athena acted as if she suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, yes. I would like to speak to you alone, child."

The way the goddess stood up and began to walk to the door made it clear that the invitation was more of a command. Apollo looked as if he wanted nothing more than to object, but couldn't. So Aria quietly followed the goddess outside.

"So tell me, why is Apollo here?"

Aria was confused by the question. Didn't she know?

"Well...um...He's here to spend time with me."

"Yes, but why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

"Incorrect."

"What?"

"That reasoning is incorrect."

The goddess looked carefully at Aria. She seemed almost...apologetic.

"Listen, I know that you may not want to hear this, but your father is not here because he cares about you."

"That's not true!"

Aria was surprised at herself for raising her voice at the goddess. But Athena was wrong. She was lying.

Athena raised her eyebrows.

"I'm sorry..." Aria started.

"Tell me _mortal_, do you honestly believe him?"

"Well of course I do. He doesn't have to be here, but he's chosen to... so far."

"You're wrong to trust him."

"I am not! Just...just leave. I don't know why you're even here."

"Are you absolutely _sure_ you wish me to go?" The question sounded more like a threat.

Aria just nodded.

The goddess sighed.

"Very well then. If you won't even bother to think or listen to reason, then I cannot help you. But remember me. Once the answers are revealed, you'll regret your decision reject wisdom.

The goddess began to glow and Aria quickly turned away so she didn't see. When the light dimmed down, Aria looked and found herself alone.

Aria went inside and found Apollo on the couch with his eyes closed.

"_Idiotic girl._

_Thinks she can boss me around._

_Like she ever could._"

"I'm going to assume you mean Athena, considering I haven't done anything to you." Aria asked, sitting next to him.

Apollo opened his eyes and frowned.

"Yeah...All of the Olympians have been out to get me since I got mad and told them off. Athena thinks she can be all wisdomy and mysteriouslike to make you believe her. What did she say, anyway?"

"'Wisdomy'? 'Mysteriouslike'?"

Apollo raised an eyebrow. "Yes. That's _exactly_ what I said, actually."

"Those aren't words."

"They are now."

"But they're not..."

"Look. God of poetry and song here." He pointed to himself. "Say all you want, but if I say it's a word, it's a word. Must I put them in a song, poem or haiku to make you shut up and quit arguing?"

Aria rolled her eyes, but otherwise dropped it.

"So are you going to tell me what she said or not?"

"She said that you were lying to me, and that I would regret believing you."

Apollo sighed.

"I was afraid of that. She's gotten good over the years. I'm sorry she bugged you. As I said before, they're all out to get me. But I...I understand if you believe her though. She can be very persuasive."

Aria was quiet for a few moments.

"I believe you."

Apollo looked at her, surprised. He seemed to light up a bit and smiled at her.

"Really?"

Aria nodded and smiled back. "You said you were here for me, and I believe you."

Apollo seemed grateful. "You know she'll be back, right?"

Aria sighed. "I figured."

Suddenly stopped smiling and just blinked.

"Something wrong?"

"Your eyes."

"My ey- oh..."

Aria remembered that she had forgotten to put her contacts in.

"They're blue?" Apollo asked.

Aria was embarrassed now. "Um...yeah, sort of."

"I thought they were green?"

"Well, they're kind of naturally blue...And...since we're being honest, my hair isn't naturally red."

Apollo sat up, really confused now.

"What?"

"Yeah. I'm actually...sort of a blond."

"Really? Wow, I never would have guessed. Well how come you changed your- Oh.."

The look on Aria's face must have been a giveaway.

"Right. Me. You did it because you didn't want to look like me, right?"

Aria quickly looked away.

"Well, I guess it really doesn't matter...Delphina, huh?"

"You mean to tell me that you honestly never knew that?"

"Well nobody ever said anything." The sun god was silent for a moment. "Who named Arty?

Aria rolled her eyes again. "I did. A long time ago."

"Delphina...Arty...Artemis..Artemis Delphina?"

"Complete coincidence!"

"Uh-huh." Apollo just grinned. "C'mon, lets go."

"Where to?"

"I'll let you pick this time."

She thought for a moment. "Movie?"

"Sounds like a plan to me."


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! Remember me? I know, I know, it's been ages. But school started up n' stuff...Crap excuse, I know. Either way, here's the next chapter ^^ It's a tad short, but oh well XD**

**Anyway, please, please, please leave a comment or review! It would mean a TON to me ^_^  
><strong>

**Disclaimer: I don't PJ&O  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>((Day 5 pt. 2))<strong>

* * *

><p>"Stupid child. Stupid, idiotic girl!"<p>

Athena sat in her throne, fuming.

"Rejecting the power of wisdom just to believe _Apollo_. And speaking to me that way. _Me!_She'll regret it greatly!"

The other gods in council watched her vent for a few moments. Nearly all of them knew that messing with an angry Athena was equal to suicide, even though they could not die. Even Poseidon and Ares were quiet. It was Hera, who sat with a smirk on her face, that decided to speak up before Athena had reached a safe level.

"Did the meeting not go as planned? I thought your plans _never_failed." She taunted.

It was almost comical the way that all of the other Olympians, with the exception of Ares, sighed and groaned at the same time as if to say, _here we go again_. Almost.

"It did not fail! I gave the girl more credit than she deserved! I had thought her wiser than she really is. She'll listen to reason soon enough. I'll make sure of it!"

Artemis frowned. "She cannot be blamed for my brother's lies. She honestly believes that Apollo is there because he _wants_ to be. You surely won't fault the poor girl for that?"

"You don't always have to act on anger, Athena." Poseidon mumbled.

This time it was Aphrodite, Zeus, Artemis, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Demeter who sighed and groaned. Hera and Ares seemed delighted at when they both knew was coming.

"Me? You're reprimanding _me_ for acting on anger? You flooded an entire _city_ because they chose me over you!"

"You bribed them with a pathetic tree! Just because your tree had a few perks."

"If my tree was so pathetic, then why did they choose it? And my tree gave them food, oil, and wood!"

"I will have you know that water is highly necessary for mortals! You were just being sneaky."

"What did you expect them to do with _salt_ water? And I wasn't being sneaky. I simply put _thought_ into my gift. It isn't my fault that your head is filled with kelp."

"So _that's_ where your daughter gets it from! Hmph. Calling my son 'Seaweed Brain' and 'Kelp Head' all of the time!"

"Your trouble-making son deserves it!"

"Trouble making?" Poseidon demanded.

"That _would_ be what I said, yes. Or did you have seaweed in your ears?"

The two immortals argued on and on.

"Quiet!" Zeus demanded, finally.

Poseidon and Athena reluctantly listened.

"Daughter, why exactly did you go to the mortal world?"

Athena sighed. "So that I could inform Aria, and tell her the real reason Apollo is there with her."

"What difference does it make if she knows or not?"

"Part of Apollo's _job_, as you insist on calling it, is to accept and obey what he is asked to do. Not to lie about it to his children to make himself look less foolish. He needed to be reminded of that."

Zeus was quiet. To everyone's surprise, it was Aphrodite who spoke next.

"Athena, it is true that Apollo's punishment was for him to be sent down to the mortal world and be forced to spend time with his children, but what does it matter what the girl thinks? Why not let her to believe that Apollo is spending time with her because he wants to?"

Athena scowled.

"Idiotic behavior deserved a punishment. Apollo's punishment was banishment from Mount Olympus until notified otherwise. He's down there lying to make himself look bad, while making _us_ look bad in the process. _That_ is why I went to tell Aria the truth."

Artemis sighed. "Sister, just let her believe what she wishes. She's happier this way. In just a couple days Apollo will return here, and odds are that he'll never bother to see Aria again."

Demeter sighed somewhat dramatically. "Does anyone even remember _why_ Apollo's been punished in the first place? Can't we all just let it go?"

Athena glared. "It was a situation similar to that of Dionysus. That's not the point, though."

"So... An off limits woman then? That's it? That's why he's being forced to spend time with his children?"

The silence was answer enough.

"Maybe Athena's right," Aphrodite spoke softly. "Maybe...the girl, Aria, should be shown the truth. It's not fair to her to have Apollo lying to her because of his pride. And he's just going to leave, anyway."

Ares hated to, but he knew he had to agree with Aphrodite. He wondered why anyone cared anyway. It was just some mortal girl. Since when had the Olympians cared about anything that happened in the mortal world? And something so sickeningly minimal...

"Very well, Athena." Zeus declared. "If it bothers you so, we shall tell the girl. Or rather, show her."

And with that, the Olympians' decision was final; Aria would be made aware of Apollo's lies.


	10. Chapter 10

**Okay. So now we have chapter 10. This is shorter than usual and it took so long for me to update, but to be honest**, **I've lost my zeal for this story.  
><strong>

**I do plan on finishing this story eventually, but it won't be the priority it used to be, and I'm sorry for that. I've lost my muse and I've kind of grown bored with this story.**

**It just seems like it doesn't get the views and comments it used to.**

**So yeah, I don't really know when the next update for this will be,  
><strong>

**Anyway, here it is, and I hope you enjoy.**

* * *

><p><strong>Day 6<strong>

* * *

><p>Aria shot up in surprise when her alarm went off. She didn't bother to look at the clock. It was still dark out, and she really didn't want to get up. Aria laid back down in bed and sighed to herself.<p>

_Come on... You have to have everything ready before Apollo gets back._

Finally, she groaned and stood up. She felt her way through the dark, making her way to the bathroom. She flipped the light switch and nearly jumped when she saw herself in the mirror. She'd completely forgotten about her hair; the previous night she had dyed her hair blond. Not bleach blond, but a natural looking blond. It was weird seeing herself with her nearly natural hair color again. It had been years. And her eyes? Blue. She looked at the contact case on the counter. _No._ She wouldn't put them in. Not today. She had to get used to looking like she was born to look...No matter how hard it was.

She was going to surprise Apollo. Maybe he would even stay. Maybe. Maybe she could talk to Apollo, and even get him to remember how much he loved her mom. Maybe. Still, doubt and worry filled her mind. What if this was all a mistake? What if he got angry? What if he left again? _No_. He wouldn't. Things would work out. She had about an hour before Apollo got back from making his daily morning trip in the sun chariot.

Twenty minutes later, Aria was refreshed and fully dressed. She ran to her nightstand table and pulled out a notebook, which she had used one night previous, to write down what it was exactly she wanted to say to Apollo. Part of her wanted to throw it away, go back to bed, and pray-although not quite literally-for Apollo to leave. That part of her was scared. The _other_ part however, couldn't wait for Apollo to get back so that she could ask him. Ask him to stay. She hated being torn. Aria glared at the notebook. This wasn't going as planned. Reading it now, she didn't like what she had written. It sounded like some stupid script for a freakin' Lifetime Network movie. But, it did express how she felt, didn't it?

_"Apollo, I know that I've fought and argued with you, told you to leave, and that I want you gone from my life completely, but-_"

Before Aria could even finish reading what she had written, the floorboard in the entryway of her room creaked. She panicked inside. She wasn't ready. Apollo shouldn't have been back for another thirty minutes! The light suddenly turned on. Standing in front of Aria was...

"I know you requested me to leave, but I am under the orders of Zeus."

Athena stood in the doorway and Aria's mouth went try. She'd been afraid of Athena before, but now, with Apollo not home...

"W-what do you want?" Aria asked, although she spoke so quietly she wasn't sure if the goddess would be able to hear.

Athena walked closer to the mortal girl.

"I only want to tell you something." She handed Aria something; a drachma. "Use this this in exactly a half hour."

"What do you mean?"

"At the proper time, you will use this to ask Lady Iris to show you the throne room on Mount Olympus. Do you understand?"

Aria quietly nodded.

"And Apollo will not be here," She nodded to the note Aria had left on her bed. "So you won't be needing _that_."

She looked at Aria for a moment, hesitating, and then the goddess disappeared.

The mortal girl sat on her bed nervously. She kept looking at the clock. She only had seven minutes until Athena's request was to be fulfilled. What was it Athena was trying to do? It made no sense. Where was Apollo? Why wasn't he here? Aria looked at the clock again. Six minutes. She began to think of how to Iris message. She decided maybe using the water from the shower might work. Five minutes. Four minutes. She quickly made her way to the bathroom and turned on the shower. A mist -not the magical kind- began to form. Aria hesitated, and then threw the drachma in.

"Iris, goddess of the rainbows. Show me the Mount Olympus throne room."

For a terrifying moment, nothing happened.

"Please?"

After a few seconds, an image suddenly appeared in the mist.

Apollo entered the throne room of Olympus. He could tell something was up, but he wasn't sure what. Yet, anyway. He looked at his sister, but her refusal to look him in the eye was a pretty good indication that something was wrong. All ten of the remaining gods were there as well. Hera looked bored, while Athena looked frustrated. Zeus sat up straight and although the words were directed at Apollo, the god looked pointedly at Athena.

"Alright, Apollo. Now we must talk."


End file.
